


never gonna need nobody's love (but yours)

by somethingmorecreative



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Barista Lance (Voltron), Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Flirting, Fluff, Gay Keith (Voltron), Keith is a mechanic, Lance (Voltron) is a Ray of Sunshine, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), and he owns a motorcycle so there's that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:15:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28470726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somethingmorecreative/pseuds/somethingmorecreative
Summary: “Order for Kevin!”An annoyed sigh had Lance grinning.“Jesus fucking Christ,” the man cursed, voice low enough that only Lance could hear him because of the soft murmuring and shuffling of the other customers in the shop. He rolled his eyes as he stalked up to the counter. “It’s Keith. Like I’ve told you a thousand fucking times.”Lance pushed the cup—black coffee, gross—toward him and smiled brightly, “Have a great day, Kevin!”;;a klance coffee shop au for stephanie
Relationships: Allura/Romelle (Voltron), Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Comments: 36
Kudos: 434





	never gonna need nobody's love (but yours)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ScorpioDream](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScorpioDream/gifts).



> hey friends! this is a klance coffee shop au that I wrote for my lovely, amazing best friend, stephanie. I wouldn't have gotten through 2020 without you, stephanie, so this is for you!! I hope it's everything you wanted from coffee shop klance. 
> 
> Thanks for reading and let me know what you think! You can find me on tumblr @somethingmorecreative1 and on twitter @smorecreative
> 
> Stay safe, stay healthy, and take care of yourselves xoxo

“Order for Kevin!”

An annoyed sigh had Lance grinning.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” the man cursed, voice low enough that only Lance could hear him because of the soft murmuring and shuffling of the other customers in the shop. He rolled his eyes as he stalked up to the counter. “It’s _Keith._ Like I’ve told you a thousand fucking times.” 

Lance pushed the cup—black coffee, _gross_ —toward him and smiled brightly, “Have a great day, Kevin!”

Keith—who just so happened to be Lance’s favorite customer—grumbled a few more choice curses under his breath, grabbing his coffee and heading for the door. He scowled again, right at Lance, as he let the door swing shut behind him.

Lance propped his chin on his hand and watched him leave, grinning from ear to ear.

The coffee shop where Lance worked was a small, quant place despite its popularity. It was always crowded in the early afternoons, which Lance always worked, thanks to its prime location on the busy, city street. Altean Mix, run by his boss and the shop’s owner Coran, was a cute, eclectic coffee shop, with the perfect atmosphere. Customers loved it. He’d been working long enough over the past two months to memorize the playlist that stayed on shuffle, a combination of pop hits and timeless 80s favorites, and he hummed along to most of the songs as he worked.

Lance had been here for the past two months since the semester ended. He graduated with his bachelor’s degree back in May and had already been accepted into law school, but without his financial aid, money was tight and he had to make rent. Altean Mix was only a few blocks from his apartment, and he’d been coming here for a long while with some of his friends, so when the _Help Wanted_ sign went up in the window at the perfect time, Lance snagged the opportunity and applied. Now, he worked mostly midday and afternoon shifts and avoided the early morning shifts as much as possible.

There were a few regulars that he liked to see every day, but Keith was by far his favorite. He came in pretty close to two o’clock in the afternoon consistently, always ordered a small black coffee, left an extra dollar in the tip jar, and seemed annoyed as hell about it. The first time he’d called Keith by the wrong name was a complete accident (he’d thought that he said _Heath_ when Lance asked him for his name), but Keith had frowned so intensely, eyebrows furrowing and mouth screwing up into a tight line that Lance had been struck stupid by how cute he was.

From then on, Lance used every chance he had to call Keith the wrong name, just to antagonize him and watch him get all riled up from it. Objectively, it was hilarious. Keith was cute all the time, but when he was angry at Lance with fire flashing in his deep, intense eyes? Yeah, he was into it.

Realistically, Lance should have asked him out on the first day when he’d noticed how cute Keith was, but now it had been so long that Lance was sure Keith would have already said something if he was actually interested. It’d probably be a waste of time anyway. Keith looked miles out of his league.

“Okay, Loverboy, thank you for terrorizing our regulars!”

Lance flinched, squawking as Romelle flicked his forehead. He rubbed at the space between his eyes and grabbed his rag to wipe down the counters, snorting in her direction.

“Keith hardly counts as a regular,” he argued.

She lifted an eyebrow, “He’s here every day, sometimes twice.”

“Under different names!”

“That you give him!” she laughed, swatting at him with her own rag.

Lance giggled too, “Seems like he’d be used to it by now, but he acts angry every time anyway.”

Romelle batted her eyelashes, “Maybe he comes here so much because he likes you.”

“Yeah sure,” he scoffed. “Likes to torture me with his ridiculous mullet maybe!”

She laughed, flitting away to grab the broom and tidy up in front of the counter. It was slow this afternoon, the lunch rush having come and gone before most people needed another dose of caffeine later in the evening, so it was just him and Romelle on shift now. He really liked working with her. She was fun and never complained, so they usually breezed through their shifts together without any problems.

And she always let him take Keith’s order when he came into the coffee shop, even if she’d originally been the one on register.

The rest of the afternoon passed slowly and quietly. Close to the end of his shift, Coran and Allura, his niece, came in through the front door, talking and laughing with each other. Coran gave them a thumbs up as he passed to go back to his office, but Allura hovered at the front counter, waiting for Romelle to notice her.

“Allura!”

Lance smiled, the excitement in Romelle’s voice obvious at seeing her girlfriend unexpectedly.

“Hi,” Allura grinned, leaning over the counter to press her lips to Romelle’s in a quick kiss.

“What are you doing here?” Romelle asked once they pulled away from each other, the counter still separating them.

Allura nodded to Lance, just now having noticed him, as she explained, “I wanted to see you. Can you take your break now?”

Before Romelle could object, Lance nodded and grabbed the rag out of her hands. She’d already taken her break a few hours ago after the lunch rush, but the shop was basically dead now anyway. Besides, Lance was a romantic at heart.

“She sure can!” Lance said cheerily, nudging Romelle out from behind the counter. “Go sit down and I’ll bring you some tea.”

Allura smiled again, reaching for Romelle’s hand once they were at each other’s sides, and they made their way toward a small table next to the window.

Lance hummed to himself while he worked. After he dropped off Allura and Romelle’s teas, he cleaned some of the machines, wiped down the counters again, and made up some orders as afternoon customers started filtering into the shop. It was nice and quiet. Romelle and Allura talked at their table, and Lance kept sneaking glances at them and smiling to himself. The two of them had been dating for a few weeks, and dancing around each other for a lot longer than that, and they were so sweet with each other that it made even Lance a bit jealous. Happy for them of course, but just a tad jealous too.

His last few relationships had been less than ideal. Dating apps were never fun, and the few one night stands he’d had over the past year were more heartbreaking than satisfying once it was over. Being busy with his degree never helped and starting law school in the fall would only make it worse, he figured. He probably needed to get used to being single.

Allura and Romelle talked for a long while, but as more customers started coming in as the evening continued, Romelle left her to get back to work. They shared another short kiss, and Allura ducked into the back to tell Coran goodbye.

“Thanks for that,” Romelle said to him, smiling as she took over the register.

He nudged her with his shoulder as he started working on a latte the customer ordered, “No worries. You guys are so cute.”

Allura and Coran reappeared from the back, Allura shouting her goodbyes as she walked back toward the door while Coran hesitated at the counter.

“Lance! A word?”

“Sure,” he agreed, sliding the latte over the counter and handing it off to the woman who’d ordered it.

Coran had the schedule in his hand as he asked, “I wondered if you would be able to switch your shift Thursday to tomorrow morning instead? I’d need you in bright and early to open up with me.”

For a brief moment, Lance mourned the loss of his morning to sleep in because that meant he’d need to be at work before the sun was even up. Telling Coran no wasn’t an option though; his boss had been so helpful and accommodating already, and if he switched his schedule around he’d have Thursday off and he could catch up on sleep then. It would be fine.

“Sure, I can do that,” Lance said.

“Excellent!” Coran clapped him on the shoulder before rearranging the schedule and turning to head back to his office. “Good work you two!”

Once he was gone, Romelle raised her eyebrow at him, “I thought you hated the morning shift?”

He groaned, “I _do_ , but I couldn’t say no to Coran.”

She laughed and nudged his shoulder, agreeing. Really, Lance had been expecting a lot of things from working at a coffee shop over the summer, but it hadn’t been Coran’s friendly demeanor, the reliable hours, or nice, friendly coworkers. In fact, the rest of his shift passed quickly, him and Romelle laughing, joking, and making up coffee orders as it got busier through the evening.

;;

The morning shift was so much worse than Lance remembered. As soon as his alarm woke him up at a quarter to five, he regretted his decision to change his schedule. But, after wallowing in bed for longer than necessary and brushing his teeth quickly, he dashed out of his apartment and made it to the shop just as Coran was opening the front door.

Between the two of them, they got the shop opened and ready for customers quickly. Their official opening time was 5:30 am, and they usually had customers waiting on them from what Lance heard from the usual morning crew. A steady stream of customers kept Lance and Coran busy for about an hour, so busy that Lance didn’t even notice how tired he was until the first morning rush was over.

Coran retreated to his office once the shop slowed down, seemingly content at Lance handling the register and customers for a while. It was so slow that Lance got his phone out and scrolled through Instagram mindlessly, yawning into his elbow every few seconds, blinking at his phone screen through his glasses.

He must have been out of it, completely distracted by his exhaustion and phone, because he didn’t notice when the bell on the door dinged, nor did he notice the customer approaching the counter until they were standing right in front of him, clearing their throat.

Lance jerked up, hastily shoving his phone away and saying, “Sorry, good morning! Welcome to Altean Mix—”

When he looked up, Keith was standing in front of him.

Except—this Keith was a little different. When Lance saw Keith on his shifts, it was in the afternoons. Keith was usually wearing a pair of jeans and a leather jacket, sometimes a t-shirt or flannel depending on the temperature that day, with a pair of combat boots. His hair was also ridiculously styled into his dumb mullet.

Not today though.

Today, Keith was in a black tank top, shoulders, biceps, and forearms out for the entire world to see. To make it worse, his dark hair was tied back into a short ponytail, some of the strands matted to the back of his neck with sweat. The athletic shorts he was wearing fell just above his knee, and even his running shoes were black and gray, like he was terrified of anything but neutral colors.

He just—wow, he looked so different. And so _strong._ He’d had no idea Keith was hiding so many muscles under his clothes.

“Uh, Lance?”

“You know my name?” Lance blurted the question unthinkingly.

Keith blinked, “You wear a nametag.”

He felt himself blush, _duh._ He stammered, “Right, um, that’s right. My name is Lance, yeah.”

For a moment, there was silence, and it was so, so awkward between them. But then, Keith started to smile, just one side of his mouth turning up into a half-grin, like he wasn’t even aware it was happening.

“You don’t usually work in the morning,” Keith asked, lifting one eyebrow.

“Do you usually come here in the morning?”

“Every morning, yeah.”

Lance frowned, “Really? For what?”

The grin took over the rest of Keith’s mouth, lighting up his face and making him look so _good_ and _awake_ this early in the morning. It was unfair.

“If you would ask for my order, I’d tell you,” he said.

Lance blushed again, glancing down to the register, “Okay, um, what would you like?”

Expecting the _small black coffee, thanks_ that he put in every day for Keith did not prepare him for the very complex, large protein shake made with almond milk and three scoops of vanilla protein powder that Keith ordered. Distantly, Lance knew that they offered protein shakes and smoothies, but it was rare for anyone to ever order them, or at least Lance thought. He often wondered why Coran kept ordering the protein powder, but Lance guessed this solved it.

Lance managed to type in Keith’s order and charged him for it, and he held out his hand, expecting Keith to hand him cash like he always did, only for Keith to fish his phone out of his pocket and hold it up to the car reader to pay.

Keith noticed him staring because after it went through, he looked up at Lance and said, “What?”

“Who even are you?”

Keith laughed sharply, face softening into another smile, “Are you going to make my drink or not?”

Lance blinked again because yes, making Keith’s order was something he needed to do but—it’d been so long since he’d made one of the protein shakes that he wasn’t sure he could remember.

“Yes just—” Lance waved him away, trying to fight the blush on his face while Keith waited for his order.

Instead of taking a step back and waiting a few paces away from the counter like he normally did, Keith leaned forward and said, “Seriously, why are you working this morning? You only work afternoons.”

Lance fumbled the ice at his voice, surprised that Keith was asking again. He hoped Keith didn’t notice how awkward and clumsy he was being. It was just—so _early_ and so _weird._

“Um, Coran needed my help this morning,” he said, struggling with the blender and the other supplies for Keith’s shake. “I traded my shift on Thursday to help him out today.”

Keith nodded, smile tugging at his lips again, and he let Lance work in peace for a moment, which was good because he needed all of his energy and attention to not mess up in front of him.

Again, this was just—so _weird._

When Lance was pouring Keith’s shake into a cup, pausing to smother a yawn into his elbow, Keith laughed again.

“You’re really not a morning person, huh?”

Lance scowled immediately, “No, I’m not. I hate being awake this early. If the sun isn’t up, I’m not up.”

“The sun is coming up now.”

“Yeah, I know,” he grumbled, grabbing the Sharpie and writing _Keith_ on the cup in his swirly script before handing it over the counter to him. “Here you go.”

Keith stared at it for a long moment, deep gaze flickering up at him and back to Lance’s handwriting on the cup.

“What?” Lance asked, wondering if he needed to redo the shake. Keith hadn’t said anything while he was making it—

“I didn’t know you knew my name because you insist on using the wrong one every day.”

_Fuck._

Lance sighed, pushing his glasses up his nose where they were sliding down. He said, “It’s too early to make up fake names. You’re Keith today.”

Then, another one of those too bright, too awake smiles appeared on Keith’s face. Keith studied him for a long moment, looking him up and down as his smile grew.

“What?” Lance asked again, irritated that Keith was so good-looking and awake this early. Who worked out before the _sun_ was even up? That was just ridiculous.

He laughed, and the sound of it made Lance want to punch the display case even though it’d break his hand. He took a sip of his shake and nodded to himself before asking, “You gonna be here this afternoon?”

“God, I hope not.”

Keith laughed again, turning toward the door, and _no,_ Lance was _not_ watching him walk away. Not one bit.

“See you,” Keith called, turning back to smirk at him one more time before he let the door close behind him and sauntered off down the street.

It was only a few moments later, having watched Keith leave, that Lance remembered he hadn’t fixed his hair (there was no time to flat iron the curls away so early in the morning) and he’d left his glasses on instead of putting in his contacts. God, he probably looked like a mess. Not even a _hot_ mess, just a mess. No wonder Keith had been laughing and smiling so much.

Lance sighed loudly, but before he could lay his head over onto the counter to pout, another customer entered the coffee shop, and he was forced to return to work, trying and failing to not think of Keith all day in his dumb work out gear with his stupid hair and ridiculously cute smiles.

;;

“Order for Karl!”

Keith grabbed his coffee off the counter, smirking as he glanced at the name. “Real original.”

Lance sniffed innocently, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Karl.”

“You know,” Keith started, shoving and extra dollar down into the tip jar, “since I know that you know my name, the fake names aren’t near as annoying.”

“Maybe they’re not supposed to be annoying,” Lance replied unthinkingly. God, it was like his mouth and brain refused to cooperate when he was talking to Keith. He only ever managed to say embarrassing and incriminating things.

Keith smirked again, eyes dark and intense, and all Lance could do was watch him.

“You working tomorrow?” Keith asked finally, breaking their tense silence when another customer entered the shop and stood a few feet from the counter, looking up to study the menu.

After a second, Lance shook himself and replied, “Maybe. Looking forward to seeing me?”

“Always,” he nodded and tipped his cup up to Lance, smiling on his way out. “See you tomorrow then.”

“Later, Karl!” Lance shouted, listening to Keith’s laughter and feeling a stupid amount of warmth pool in his chest as he tried to focus on the next customer. “Welcome to Altean Mix! What can I get for you?”

;;

By the time Keith came into the coffee shop that afternoon, Lance was too exhausted to be excited to see him.

Keith’s routine visits had easily become the best thing about working at the coffee shop. Since the morning shift he’d worked a few weeks ago, Keith’s stops during Lance’s shifts were a little different. While Keith had been endlessly annoyed at the fake names before, now, he seemed to be completely amused—and maybe even endeared, if Lance was being hopeful—by it. Every time he stopped by the shop, he was smiling and laughing, even teasing Lance enough to make him blush and stutter nervously. It really _seemed_ like Keith was flirting with him, but he wasn’t sure, and he didn’t want to assume anything and make it weird.

He guessed he would accept his fate and stay in this weird, flirty stage with Keith where he desperately looked forward to seeing his leather jacket wearing, mullet styled fantasy boyfriend every afternoon when he worked.

While he eagerly awaited Keith’s arrival on most of his shifts, today had already been horrible, so he was having a difficult time looking forward to anything other than getting off work and going home to sleep.

First, Coran had called him in this morning at eight when one of the other employees called in sick, which meant he ended up working a double shift until late evening. He had helped Coran through the morning shift, and then Nyma came in close to 10. She was a fun person but a horrible coworker. Despite Coran’s policies when the shop was busy, Nyma spent an excessive amount of time on her phone, which resulted in Lance doing almost all the work. He desperately wished that Romelle had the midday shift instead of the night shift tonight; he preferred working with her over everyone else, especially when it was long hours.

The morning and lunch rush were much busier than normal, so customers constantly filed in and out of the shop, and Lance had missed both his morning break and lunch break already. Not to mention the fact that their espresso machine wasn’t working today and needed repairs. All day customers had been disappointed, and a few outright aggressive, about the broken machine, and they’d taken all their anger out on Lance while Nyma scrolled through Twitter and complained about her battery life.

It had been the first bad day he’d had in a while, and he was exhausted. Nyma was getting ready to clock out and leave, and although Coran asked her to stay when he noticed how busy it was even hours after lunch, she refused and clocked out anyway.

“I can call someone else in,” Coran suggested, looking at Lance worriedly.

He sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face and plastering a smile there. Only a few more hours and then he could go home. He said, “It’s fine, Coran. I’ve got this.”

Once Nyma left, Lance was at least able to get his work done in peace, helping the customers who did shuffle inside to place orders and then catching up on cleaning in between. He was so busy that he didn’t notice the time passing until a familiar face stepped up to the counter and cleared their throat.

“Welcome to Altean Mix, what can I get—” Lance started, turning over his shoulder to see Keith standing on the other side of the counter.

Immediately, his eyes went to the clock on the wall. Keith was almost an hour and a half later than normal. It was even closer to the end of Lance’s shift now.

“Hey,” Lance sighed, exhaustion seeping into the greeting. “You’re late.”

Keith eyed him carefully, “You look tired.”

Lance nodded and wiped his hands as he stepped to the counter, typing in Keith’s usual order and holding out his hand even as he said, “Your usual?”

He pulled his wallet from his back pocket as he said, “Seriously, are you alright? Can’t you take a break or something?”

“I’m the only one—”

“He sure can!”

Before Lance could finish his reply to Keith’s question, Coran interrupted by materializing at the register next to him, swatting his hands away. He hadn’t even noticed Coran come out of his office or step behind the counter.

“I’m okay,” he tried to object.

Coran shook his head and elbowed him out from behind the register, “You didn’t get to take a lunch break! Take it now. I’ll handle the register and orders.”

“You never work the register,” he argued.

Coran raised an eyebrow and snatched an extra apron from underneath the counter, tying it around his waist so quickly it was a little crooked. He said, “I think I can manage a few cups of coffee for half an hour!”

“You should eat something too,” Keith said, nodding to Coran. “Maybe a sandwich or something.”

“Right-o!” Coran punched at the register, adding Lance’s sandwich to Keith’s order.

“Hey, I’ll get it—” Lance started, patting his pockets.

Keith shook his head, grabbing more cash from his wallet, “Put it on mine, Coran. And coffee?”

“I can buy my own food.”

Keith raised an eyebrow, “Coffee or not?”

When he tried to turn to Coran to get him to take the sandwich off Keith’s order, his eyes were already sparkling mischievously, and Lance knew it would be pointless to argue with him now.

So, he sighed and said, “Green tea.”

“Good choice, my boy!” Coran nodded, accepting a handful of cash from Keith before he could even list off the price or before Lance could object again. “I’ll have it right out to you.”

For a second, it was a little awkward. Lance wasn’t sure what to do next.

Then, Keith tapped his knuckles against the counter, smile growing as he asked, “Want to come sit with me?”

Lance blinked, “You usually take your coffee to go.”

“Because you can’t usually take your break with me,” Keith countered, smirk replacing the small grin.

He felt himself flush even as Coran laughed under his breath, turning away to get started on their order. By the time Lance had untied his apron and made it around the counter, he’d already finished prepping Keith’s coffee and Lance’s tea. Keith scooped them up and gestured for Lance to pick a table.

Lance chose one of the small tables next to the window. A few other customers were still in the shop, one young college student working on her laptop in a booth, and an older man in a suit checking his phone with the newspaper spread out over the table. It was quiet, and as soon as they sat down at the table, Lance realized how _intimate_ it felt too.

Almost like they were on a date.

Keith pushed his tea toward him, and even though it hadn’t had enough time to steep or cool, he took a large gulp. Now that he was sitting, he realized how tired and hungry he was. He really hoped Coran hurried with his sandwich because he didn’t want Keith to listen to his stomach growling for much longer.

“Long day?” Keith asked, quirking his eyebrow and picking up his coffee. Coran hadn’t written Keith’s name—or anything else—on the cup.

He nodded, “Yeah. I got here this morning, and it’s been crazy since.”

“That’s rough.”

“Yeah,” he sighed. “Let me pay you back for the food.”

“I got it.”

Lance leveled a _look_ at him. There was no way he was going to let Keith pay for him today. Nuh-uh. Nope. Not happening. They weren’t even on a real date!

Keith seemed to know exactly what he was thinking though because he smirked again and said, “My treat.” 

“Your treat is my company,” he said primly. “You don’t have to pay for my food.”

“Your company is totally worth a few dollars for a sandwich and a tea,” he laughed, agreeing with Lance, much to his surprise. “You’re not an expensive date.”

“I can be expensive!”

Keith grinned, “So you are my date?”

He stammered, feeling his face flush. _Fuck,_ he was used to being the charming one! He was usually the one that did all the flirting! He didn’t know how it felt to be flirted with! And how was Keith so good at it? Why couldn’t he stop blushing so damn much?

“Shut up, Keith,” he grumbled while Keith laughed again. “Why are you so much later than normal?”

“I got caught up at work.”

Lance took another sip of his tea, the honey soothing his throat. “What do you do?”

“I own the garage on 22nd street,” Keith explained.

“The mechanic shop?”

“Yeah.”

Lance stared at him, “You own it?”

Keith nodded, sipping his coffee, “Yeah. I worked there all through high school and then when I was eighteen, they promoted me. Last year, the owner left it to me when he retired.”

“How old are you?” Lance asked. He’d never really thought about Keith’s age before. He didn’t _look_ old enough to own a garage, but some people aged gracefully, Lance supposed.

“I’ll be 25 in October.”

Okay, that was good. Just a year older than him. That was perfect, actually. Lance wasn’t exactly _picky_ , but he generally preferred a certain age range in his potential dates, and Keith fit perfectly in it.

“So you were late because of work?” Lance asked, wanting more information about Keith however he could get it.

“Yeah, we had a problem with a car we’re rebuilding for a customer,” Keith explained. “I had to sort it out myself, take the car for a test drive. I got stranded in it when the transmission fell out unexpectedly.”

Lance’s jaw dropped, “It just fell out of the car?”

“Yeah,” he laughed. “It was a mess. Took forever to convince the owner that he had to buy a new one for us to put on the car. Then I had to call and order more parts, so I was on the phone for a while, which set me back on my break.”

Coran set his sandwich down in front of him, humming along to the song playing before spinning back to the counter to take care of another customer. He looked completely in his element, happy even, so Lance forced himself to sit back and relax. After all, he deserved a break.

“You come here every day on your break?” Lance asked. “And in the mornings?”

He nodded, “Yeah. I stop by on my way home from the gym in the morning and then I come back in the afternoon for a cup of coffee. The coffee at the garage sucks ass.”

Lance laughed, holding one hand over his mouth since he’d taken a bite of his sandwich during Keith’s explanation.

Keith grinned at him, leaning forward a little more, “What do you do other than work here?”

“Bold of you to assume I have a life outside of pouring cups of coffee,” Lance teased, reaching for his tea. Keith smiled again in response. He continued, “I graduated back in May, and I start law school in the fall. I needed to pay rent, so here I am.”

“You want to be a lawyer?”

Lance ducked his head, “Yeah, I think so. I hope so.”

“You don’t sound too sure.”

He laughed a little, “I’m pretty sure I want to be a lawyer. I shuffled through a lot of different majors, but Political Science and Criminal Justice were the only two that stuck, so I double majored. I thought I wanted to be a pilot or maybe an astronaut—but turns out I’m horrible at math and science and don’t care enough to be better at it.”

“Yeah?” Keith asked, eyes sparkling with interest even though Lance was sure this was boring as hell.

“I studied languages for a while and got really good at a handful of them,” he admitted, “so I thought I might do something with diplomacy or Foreign Affairs. I spent a year in Spain on study abroad, but when I got back to the States, I was really interested in politics and then you know—figured law school was a good bet.”

“Wow, that’s amazing,” Keith said, clearly impressed. The knowledge made Lance feel warm again, and he took another bite of his sandwich.

“Thanks,” he said a few seconds later. “So, I start school in the fall, and we’ll see how it goes.”

“That’s really impressive,” Keith said again, taking a long sip of his coffee.

Lance smiled again, “Tell me more about you.”

The conversation was easy, so easy it was almost unbelievable. Lance and Keith sat at their small table and talked for what felt like hours instead of mere minutes. Keith was laughing and smiling at him, and under the table, his foot bumped into Lance’s more than once, and he doubted it was on accident.

It made Lance really, stupidly excited and hopeful.

A few minutes before his break was scheduled to end, the door to the coffee shop swung open, the bell ringing lightly, and Lance looked over Keith’s shoulder to see Romelle and Allura walk into the shop, hand in hand.

Romelle’s eyes met his immediately, her gaze widening in surprise when she spotted him with Keith. She mouthed _oh my god_ in his direction.

Lance looked back to Keith before he realized he was distracted.

Only a few moments later, Romelle ducked into the back to clock in for work, pressing a goodbye kiss to Allura’s lips. Then, Allura turned back toward them, walking in their direction to get to the door, and Keith actually smiled at the sight of her.

“Hey, Allura,” he said, and Lance almost did a double take. They knew each other?

She smiled, stepping over toward them, and said, “Hi guys. Strange time to see you here, Keith.”

He rolled his eyes, but the gesture was fond. He said, “I can keep my own schedule and make time for what I want.”

“Whatever you say,” Allura said mysteriously, winking at Lance once before turning back to the door, ponytail swinging behind her. “See you guys!”

Keith’s words were still ringing in his ears. He might not have meant it, but the insinuation that he made time to hang out with Lance because he wanted to was still lodged in his chest. So much for not getting his hopes up. With the way that Keith was looking at him and smiling at him, his hopes were already unreasonably sky high.

Lance waited until Allura was outside before asking, “How do you know Allura?”

“Family friend,” Keith said. “I’ve known her and Coran for a long time. Why do you think I come here twice a day?”

“Maybe it’s near your apartment, or maybe, as a small business owner, you hate large corporations like Starbucks, I don’t know,” Lance shrugged. 

Keith laughed, “I don’t have a vendetta against Starbucks. Besides, if I went there, I’d never get to see you.”

Because he apparently couldn’t help himself around Keith, he blushed again. Then, he glanced back over to the clock and noticed the time. He needed to go clock back in and help Romelle. More customers would be coming in soon.

“I should get back to work,” Lance said, disappointed.

Keith nodded once, and then said, “Are you dating anyone?”

His disappointment immediately evaporated, and Lance’s heart skipped a beat. He grinned, maybe a little shy, “Do you think I’d be sitting here with you if I was?”

“I don’t know, you tell me.”

“I’m not dating anyone right now,” he confirmed, grin widening when Keith smirked again.

“Can I have your number then?”

Lance bit his lip to keep from squeaking in excitement. He nodded and reached to his pocket, pulling out the extra Sharpie he kept there during his shifts. Then, before Keith could object, he reached forward, grabbed Keith’s now empty coffee cup, and wrote his number on the side of it, filling in the previously empty space.

He pushed the cup back into Keith’s hand, their fingers brushing, and said, “Text me tonight so I have your number too.”

Keith grinned, and _wow,_ this boy was bad for Lance’s heart. He said, “Deal.”

;;

_Hey, it’s Keith._

As soon as his phone displayed Keith’s message, only a few hours later just as Lance was walking in the door of his apartment, his heartbeat ratcheted up a thousand more beats a minute, pounding wildly in his chest. 

Lance slung his keys and jacket down onto the counter, kicking the door closed behind him and leaning against it to reply.

_hey!! good timing, I just got home!!_

_Long day, huh?_

They picked their conversation up easily, and texting with someone had never felt so fun, so amazing for Lance. The entire time, his heart was beating way too fast and his mouth was turned up in a smile so much that after a few hours, his jaw was hurting. It was ridiculous and easy and _crazy_ good.

;;

“Lance,” Romelle called, slurring her speech a bit and spilling a sip of her beer. She’d had a few drinks too many already, and Allura pulled her farther into her side. She continued, “Tell us about your boyfriend!”

“Boyfriend?” Hunk asked, eyebrows climbing up his forehead in surprise.

Pidge snorted into her drink, “Lance doesn’t have a boyfriend. He’d already be bragging about it.”

“Actually,” Allura interjected, grinning, “he does. I saw them together on his break, having coffee.”

Lance bit his lip, laughing into his own drink nervously, feeling his face heat up.

The bar was crowded, the low roar of the crowd talking and laughing even drifting over to their booth in the corner. They’d met up earlier for drinks at their usual spot across town to hang out for a few hours. Since graduation, it wasn’t as easy for them to meet up for dinner and drinks as it had been when they were in school what with all of their different schedules to manage. Pidge and Hunk had both gotten fancy new jobs, and Allura was preparing to go on her gap year in Europe, not to mention Lance and Romelle’s schedule at the coffee shop. It was just nice to see everyone for once.

But it was true that Lance hadn’t mentioned Keith yet. They weren’t serious or anything, but the past week had been a lot of fun. They had been texting nonstop, and Keith still visited the coffee shop daily. Sometimes, he’d even managed to come right on time for Lance to take his break, so they got to sit together and talk. They even had their first real date planned for tomorrow night. Keith was picking him up and everything.

Lance wasn’t sure why he was keeping Keith a secret from his friends. They were right; he was usually bragging and boasting about new relationships, but there was something different this time, something different about Keith. He didn’t want to jinx it, but he thought this could be something great.

“Earth to Lance?”

“Ugh, great,” Pidge complained, “he must be dating someone because he’s already daydreaming about them.”

“I’m not!” he objected, even though he totally was.

Hunk leaned over the table toward him, eyes wide, “Tell us your secrets!”

“I don’t have secrets!” Lance said, rolling his eyes. “It’s not anything serious yet. I don’t even know if it’s going to work out.”

Allura snorted into her drink, “Yeah right. Have you seen the way he looks at you?”

As Lance blushed, Hunk said, “If someone doesn’t explain, I’m going to start screaming.”

“Okay, okay,” Lance amended. He knew Hunk was serious; he might not openly admit it, but he was a fiend for drama, especially when he’d been drinking. “There’s this guy that’s been coming into the coffee shop every day, and he asked me out. We’re going on a date tomorrow night.”

“He comes in as Lance takes his break, and they have coffee all the time,” Romelle gushed.

Hunk gasped, like he was personally offended that Lance hadn’t already told him all of this.

“It’s not serious yet,” Lance defended himself weakly.

“What’s his name,” Hunk said, not even a question, just a demand.

“Keith,” he answered.

Hunk blinked then, trading glances with Pidge.

Pidge cleared her throat, “Keith Kogane?”

“You know him?”

“He owns the garage on 22nd street that fixed my Challenger two months ago when I bought it,” Hunk explained. “Allura gave me his name after Pidge and I searched for parts to do it ourselves and then fucked the engine over. She knows him too.”

“Right,” Lance agreed.

“He’s cute,” Hunk offered.

Pidge frowned, “Doesn’t seem like your type though.”

“What, hot successful business owners aren’t my type?”

“Not usually, no.”

“He started flirting with me after I was on the morning shift a few weeks ago,” Lance said, biting his lip to keep from smiling too much. He could picture exactly how Keith had looked that day, glancing him up and down, smiling softly when he’d admitted to knowing Keith’s real name. If he hadn’t already been obsessed with Keith, that day would have solidified it, especially with Keith in all of his workout gear…

Hunk slammed a hand onto the table, “On a morning shift? You hate morning shifts! Oh man, he must really like you.”

“He does!” Romelle added, nodding.

“Okay, but let’s not jinx it,” Lance said. He was already so, so excited about the date with Keith tomorrow, and he didn’t want anything to potentially ruin it. He already liked him so much, and he knew he’d be devastated if it didn’t work out with Keith. “We’ll see how it goes tomorrow.”

Somehow, he convinced his friends to stop talking about Keith and their date tomorrow. The rest of the night was spent just catching up with each other, ordering more drinks and fries for the table. They stayed out for a few more hours, and by the time they were all getting ready to go home, Lance was happy to have seen them, glad that they were all still able to hang out with each other and catch up when they had time despite their busy lives.

After paying their tabs, they walked out of the bar together. It was dark out, but the summer heat still lingered in the air from the day. The street was busy and crowded, the normal scene for Friday night in the city.

Lance was looking for his MetroCard he’d dropped in his bag earlier (he’d come to the bar straight from the coffee shop, so he had to carry his messenger bag with him) as they bid their goodbyes on the sidewalk.

Then, as Hunk was reaching to hug him, he paused and said, “Uh, Lance?”

He looked up. All of his friends were staring past him, right over his shoulder.

Before he could ask what was wrong, Allura grinned and nodded her head toward the street, “Someone is here to see you.”

He turned, looking over his own shoulder, and froze.

Because Keith was there, barely a few feet away, leaning back against a sleek, red and black motorcycle. He had his hands tucked into the pockets of his dark jeans, combat boots and leather jacket glinting under the tungsten street lights to match the smooth paint job on the bike. Two helmets sat on the motorcycle’s seat behind Keith.

Keith met his gaze, and one side of his mouth pulled up into a grin. He nodded at Lance.

Lance turned back to his friends, blinking. Hunk and Pidge were staring in shock, Allura was grinning, and Romelle was swooning into Allura’s side, gushing about how romantic it all was.

“Um, see you guys later!” Lance said, turning on his heel away from them.

Allura laughed even as Pidge called, “You’re not even going to introduce us? Rude!”

Lance stopped in front of Keith, only a foot away, but still on the sidewalk. Keith was parked in a fire lane, right next to a hydrant, so he couldn’t have been here long. He also looked—amazing. Lance’s heart was beating so hard in his chest that he was almost afraid Keith could tell.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Thought you might want a ride home instead of taking the subway,” Keith said, completely casual, still smiling.

Lance looked at his motorcycle, “On this?”

“You’re not nervous, are you?”

He scowled at the teasing in Keith’s voice and said, “No, of course not.”

Keith handed him a helmet, “Then c’mon. I’ll keep you safe.”

_Dammit_ , Keith was making him blush again. He really needed to get a handle on himself, but this was just so… he’d never had anyone treat him like this before. Keith was so thoughtful and caring and _hot_ , and it was too much for Lance on a good day.

Lance took the helmet from him and nodded.

Keith grinned and grabbed his own helmet, slinging one leg over onto the motorcycle and settling on the seat. He said, “Climb on.”

He did. Carefully, almost hesitantly, he sat behind Keith. 

“Put your helmet on.”

Lance did, and Keith turned, reaching to his helmet to flip up the visor so he could meet Lance’s gaze. For a second, he didn’t move, just stared into his eyes, and _god_ , everything with Keith was always so _intense._ He’d never felt like this with anyone else before. They weren’t even doing anything, and it felt like bolts of electricity were rushing through him, bouncing back and forth between them.

“Hold onto me,” Keith said then, “and flip the visor down when you get ready.”

Lance nodded, and Keith put his own helmet on, mullet disappearing beneath it. Lance pushed his bag to his side, and underneath them, the bike roared to life.

He jumped unexpectedly, hands clamping down onto Keith’s waist and holding on. Distantly, he could hear Keith chuckling to himself, and Lance huffed.

“Ready?” Keith asked, laughter still in his voice.

Lance squeezed Keith’s waist, “Yes, please don’t get me killed.”

Keith laughed again, but instead of replying, he revved the motorcycle and they shot off down the street, merging into traffic seamlessly, the sidewalk and his friends disappearing behind them.

Lance immediately molded himself to Keith’s back, feeling him laugh again underneath him. He had never ridden a motorcycle before, but it was somehow exactly as he imagined. The road flew underneath them, and Keith blew through two green lights, weaving through the cars beside and ahead of them. Lance almost felt a little bit like he was flying, and his heart was pounding in his chest. Keith could probably feel it from how he was pressed up against his back and clutching him so tightly.

The faster they rode, the windier it got. When they slowed at a red light, Lance reached up and flipped his visor down, curling tighter around Keith.

“Do you need to go home now?” Keith asked when they stopped, voice loud over the engine rumbling underneath them.

Lance shook his head, excitement bubbling in his chest, “No, I’ve got plenty of time.”

Keith nodded once, and the light turned green.

They shot off with the rest of the traffic, and Lance held onto Keith.   
;;

The view of the city from the back of Keith’s motorcycle was amazing. Lance wasn’t sure where they were headed, but he wasn’t complaining. The wind was warm and so was Keith where Lance was huddled against his back.

They took the bridge out of the city, and Lance turned over his shoulder to look back at the city lights just as Keith revved the engine again. He didn’t have a way to track how much time passed, but eventually, the streets grew less crowded, and Keith drove a little faster with less traffic. All Lance could think about was how romantic it was. He kept smiling and blushing underneath his helmet, glad that Keith couldn’t see him because of it.

Later, Keith slowed, and Lance looked out around him to see a much less crowded street. There were a few people on the sidewalk and cars parallel parked on the street, and Keith pulled the bike to a stop in one spot, cutting the engine and kicking the stand down.

He pulled his helmet off, mullet reappearing, and turned to look back at Lance, eyes bright and excited. He asked, “You okay?”

Lance realized he was still holding onto Keith, that he hadn’t let go when they stopped, and he snatched his arms back, bringing his hands up to pull his helmet off, smoothing his hair back down. He nodded, still biting his lip, “Where are we?”

Keith jerked his head, motioning down the street a bit, and Lance looked further. One single story building looked open despite the late hour, lights bright through the windows, neon flickering a bit all around the edges of the building. A few people lingered inside and outside, passing through the door, smoking cigarettes, laughing, and talking.

“A diner?” Lance asked. Oddly enough, it looked like it hopped right out of the 50s, all neon, metallic, and pastel colors.

“I used to come here all the time when I was a kid,” he replied, smiling. “Still do sometimes. Are you hungry?”

“Absolutely.”

They climbed off Keith’s bike, Lance stumbling a bit once he was back on his feet, unsteady. Keith secured their helmets and tucked the key into his pocket, turning back to Lance. They made their way down the street toward the diner, and Keith’s hand was hovering over the small of his back, barely touching him, and Lance was ready to scream, Keith was so fucking _sweet._

To make matters worse, Keith held the door open for him, hovering around his shoulder once they stepped inside, warm presence almost overwhelming at his back. Lance wanted to lean back into him and close his eyes.

A waitress motioned them inside, gesturing to a row of empty booths and telling them to pick one that suited them. There were a few other people around the diner, but the tables closest to the booths were conveniently empty.

Lance picked one at random, and Keith slid down into the booth on the opposite side of where Lance stood. He thought about sitting down, a table separating them where they’d have to reach out for each other over the large surface, feet knocking into one another both on accident and purpose. Then, he decided that wasn’t good enough.

Instead of sitting down on the opposite side of the table, Lance moved back to Keith’s side and followed him, scooting all the way over to him and settling there, shoulders pressed together.

Keith grinned at him and slung one arm to the back of the booth so that Lance could get even closer.

“Hi,” Keith murmured, just low enough for him to hear.

“Hi,” Lance replied, pressing more firmly to his side so even their hips were pressed together.

The waitress appeared at the end of their table, smacking her gum, “Need a menu, sweetheart?”

Keith looked down at Lance, “Do you?”

“What do you get?”

“Burger and fries.”

Lance nodded, “Okay, that sounds good.”

Keith ordered their food, the waitress nodding as she wrote the ticket, and Keith added, “And two vanilla shakes.”

Lance pinched his side, “Strawberry.”

“Ow,” Keith grumbled, one side of his mouth tilting up into a smile, looking back at their waitress to amend their order before she walked back to the kitchen. “What’s wrong with vanilla?”

Lance rolled his eyes, “It’s boring, Keith.”

He scoffed, “It’s the best flavor!”

“Wrong.”

“Oh, so you’re telling me _strawberry_ is better?”

Lance started laughing, shoving Keith a little roughly, “Yes! I’m glad you’re admitting it!”

Keith laughed too, arm dropping down to his shoulders and wrapping around him to pull him into Keith’s chest for a moment. Lance went easily, even closing his eyes at how close they were for a brief second, before pulling back.

“I didn’t expect to see you at the bar,” Lance said, the diner music low in the background along with the steady clash of dishes on silverware as people ate.

“You texted and said you were walking, and there’s rain in the forecast,” Keith explained, eyes dark and intense. “I just—was worried, I guess.”

Lance bit his lip, but even that couldn’t stop his smile. He said, “You’re so—I can’t believe you.”

Keith laughed then, but it sounded more nervous than normal, like he wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not and maybe a little bit like he was scared to ask or find out.

“This is kind of like a pre-date then, huh?” Lance asked, wanting nothing more than Keith’s nerves to evaporate. He had nothing to be afraid of; he was easily the cutest, sweetest, most amazing guy he’d ever been out with before

Keith nodded, “Are you excited for tomorrow?”

“Yes!” he said, hiding his face into Keith’s shoulder. “My friends were teasing me about it.”

“I’m excited too.”

“What do you have planned?”

Keith smirked, “Trying to ruin the surprise?”

“This date is the surprise date!” Lance argued. “Tell me what we’re doing tomorrow.”

“I have a reservation for dinner.”

Lance hummed, “Somewhere nice?”

“Of course.”

“Then what?”

Keith snorted, “I’m definitely keeping that part a surprise. You’ll have to wait and see.”

Before Lance could argue, their waitress returned to their table with the milkshakes. She dropped them off before heading back to the kitchen, and Lance passed Keith his boring, vanilla milkshake while sipping on his strawberry one.

“As long as it’s with you,” Lance sang, batting his eyelashes.

Keith rolled his eyes, but the gesture was fond, and his cheeks were a little flushed. Lance preened, absolutely obsessed with the thought that Keith liked his ridiculous, over the top flirting.

Their food came to the table a few minutes later, and they ate while they talked. Most of their coffee shop dates (loosely referred to as dates when they just happened coincidentally on Lance’s breaks during his shifts) had been focused on the usual first date, biographical information. Tonight, they talked about their separate days, Lance’s friends, and Keith’s childhood. The conversation was easy, even when they got to difficult topics, and again, Lance was surprised at how well suited they were for each other. It was so strange, how easy everything was between them.

Keith insisted on paying for their food, even though Lance wanted to half it, but he settled for letting Lance leave the tip once they’d finished their shakes. It had already been late in the evening when Lance and his friends decided to leave the bar, and now that he and Keith drove all the way out to the diner and finished their food, it was even later.

Outside, the sky was cloudy above the streetlights, and the small crowds outside were even rowdier, people laughing and talking in their small groups along the street. As they exited the diner, Keith holding the door open for him again, Lance bit down another grin and reached back to take his hand.

Keith looked over at him for a second, a little surprised, but then his smile and eyes softened. He gripped Lance’s hand, intertwining their fingers, and they walked toward Keith’s bike together in silence.

They stopped at the bike, Keith leaning back against it and rubbing his thumb across the palm of Lance’s hand. It felt so nice that Lance stepped right into his space, swaying so close to him that their chests brushed.

“Do you work tomorrow morning?” Keith asked, breaking the easy silence between them. His voice was soft.

Lance shook his head, “I’m off all day. You?”

“I have to go to the garage in the morning for a bit, but I’ll be finished close to noon, I hope,” Keith explained, smiling. “Plenty of time before our date.”

He smiled again—god, he was _always_ smiling around Keith—and squeezed Keith’s hand, “Awesome, I can’t wait.”

Then, before either of them could say anything else, it started raining.

Huge raindrops fell from the sky. It wasn’t stormy, a heavy summer rain, but even just seconds later, Lance was already soaked to the bone, the rain coming so swiftly and suddenly that they didn’t have time to run for cover. Instead of worrying about it, he tilted his head back, smiling at the raindrops rolling down his face and neck. He loved the rain.

He opened his eyes to look at Keith, only to find Keith already watching him. His eyes were dark and intense as he stared right at Lance, like he was thinking about something really, really serious. When Lance met his gaze, he smiled a little, shaky around the edges, and for some reason, his heart skipped a beat in his chest. 

Lance laughed once, the words bubbling to his lips without his permission. As he wrapped his arms around Keith’s neck and stepped closer, he said, “Kiss me.”

He didn’t disappoint. After what felt like a moment of hesitation, Keith moved. Without a word, he gripped Lance’s hips and pulled him into his body, leaning down to kiss him, mouth gentle but insistent against his own, their lips slick with rain.

Lance closed his eyes, sighing into the kiss, and he felt Keith smile as he pulled him even closer, kissing him deeply, right in the middle of the rain.

It was like a scene from Lance’s late night, romantic fantasies. Keith was just—this was _unreal._

Keith pulled back a few moments later, both of them gasping for breath.

“Wow,” Lance breathed, staring at him. Keith’s hair was wet, plastered in dark strands to his neck, but his eyes were bright and sparkling, lips kissed red and wet, tilted up into a smile.

“Yeah,” Keith echoed, staring right back at him.

They were just—standing in the rain and staring at each other, like this was some fucking movie.

A moment later, when the rain didn’t stop, Lance said, voice loud enough for Keith to hear over the cacophony of rain hitting the concrete around them, “Should we go back inside and wait until it stops?”

Keith looked up, the long, pale line of his neck catching Lance’s gaze and holding it until he said, “I think it’s set in. No point in waiting when we’re already soaked.”

“Can you even drive like this?”

“I thought you said you weren’t scared?” Keith smirked, hands flexing at Lance’s hips.

Instead of answering, Lance leaned up and kissed him again, swallowing a pleased hum from Keith and gripping the ends of his soaked hair.

When he pulled back, Keith looked dazed, and Lance took the moment to smirk, “I thought you said you’d keep me safe?”

“I will.” Keith’s voice was so intense when he said it, like it was a promise, a vow.

Lance smiled at him, heart beating wildly in his chest, and said, “Let’s go then.”

;;

It rained the entire way back to the city. Thankfully, the steady stream of it lessened, and it drizzled on them, still soaking their clothes. Lance was glad for his helmet keeping the water out of his face while Keith drove.

As the crossed the bridge back into the city, Keith slowed a bit, turning over his shoulder, and Lance leaned in to hear him.

“We’re probably closer to my apartment,” Keith offered, voice low and careful for the first time that night.

Lance laughed at his hesitance and squeezed him tighter. He wasn’t sure why, but it felt like they’d been dating for years instead of a day, almost like he’d known Keith forever instead of just having met him. Over the wind and through his helmet, he yelled, “Then go there! I’m soaked!”

He heard Keith laugh, and he held on tighter, closing his eyes.

Traffic was heavier in the city, but the rain had mostly stopped by the time they got to Keith’s apartment. It wasn’t too far from his in all actuality, but he wasn’t planning on telling Keith that. He definitely wanted more time with him.

They pulled into the parking garage, climbing up a few different levels enough to almost make him dizzy, before Keith pulled the bike into an empty spot and cut the engine. Lance pulled his helmet off, running a hand through his still damp hair.

Keith removed his helmet too and cleared his throat, “You want to go inside?”

“Duh,” Lance replied, rolling his eyes.

Keith laughed, the sound low in his chest, and they climbed off the bike and walked toward a door that led to the inside hallway of the apartment building. Keith passed a few doors, reaching back for his hand, before stopping at his own and fishing his keys out of his pocket.

He opened the door and motioned Lance inside, and he stepped in easily.

Keith’s apartment was bigger than his, definitely a little nicer too. The door opened into a small hallway with the kitchen on the right, where the microwave light was on to illuminate the room. Beyond that, the living room was large, with huge windows and a small balcony that looked out at the city. Another short hallway led away from the living room back to what Lance assumed was Keith’s bedroom and bathroom.

Lance set his bag down on the edge of the counter, and when he looked down, a large dog, a black German Shepherd, was standing at his feet, tail wagging and tongue lolling out of its mouth.

“Oh!” he said, surprised, but kneeling and reaching out to the dog. “Keith, you didn’t tell me you had a puppy!”

Keith laughed again, and the dog came forward to Lance, ducking his head into Lance’s outstretched hands, tail still wagging.

“You’re so cute,” Lance cooed, petting the dog, “what’s your name?”

“Kosmo,” Keith answered.

“You’re so cute, Kosmo,” he said, laughing when Kosmo barked once in reply.

Keith stepped around him and into the living room, turning on one of the lamps so that it wasn’t so dark. He said, “You want some clothes? I’m still soaked.”

“Yeah sure,” Lance smiled up at him, Kosmo still nudging his chest happily.

Keith watched them for a second before shaking his head and turning around, disappearing down the hallway with a soft, “Be right back.”

Kosmo sat down in front of Lance, content to be loved on all night apparently, and Lance laughed to himself, petting him while looking around Keith’s apartment. It was decorated sparsely, definitely minimalist with neutral colors, some reds and navy accents. He had a large sectional couch as the only piece of furniture in the living room, other than the coffee table and house plants in the corner. It was clean too, and absently, Lance thought that Keith must work a lot because while it definitely looked lived in, it didn’t have the same worn-in clutter that Lance’s apartment did.

A few moments later, Keith came back into the room, dressed in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, hair tied back away from his face. He was holding out a stack of clothes for Lance, one side of his mouth tilted up in a smile, and Lance got back to his feet, grabbing his bag and taking the clothes from Keith, theirs hands brushing.

“Bathroom’s the first door on the left,” he said.

“Thanks,” Lance smiled.

He ducked into the bathroom, listening to Keith talk to Kosmo softly as he shut the door. Keith’s bathroom was clean, tidy, exactly like the rest of his apartment.

Lance looked in the mirror, immediately frowning. His hair was drying thankfully, but it was curly again, and definitely frizzy. He ran his hands through it a few more times, his curls only getting more defined as it dried. His contacts were dry, and as he rummaged through his bag, he found his phone only to see that it was already past midnight and his friends had texted him worriedly, wanting to make sure he was still alive.

He texted back a reassuring message and then found his extra contact case and solution and his glasses. He always carried an extra pair of glasses to the coffee shop with him after he’d worked a shift nearly blind when he lost a contact one day. It was late, and his contacts were getting dry and itchy. Besides, Keith had started flirting with him the first time when he was wearing his glasses, so that had to be a good thing, right?

It didn’t matter much. He felt a lot better after he’d taken them out and put on his glasses.

He also changed into the clothes that Keith brought him, an extra pair of shorts and a t-shirt, and they fit him just fine. Keith was only a few inches taller than him, two at the most, and his shoulders were a little broader, arms maybe more defined. Keith definitely looked like he went to the gym every day.

He studied himself in the mirror for a long moment before grabbing his bag and walking back out to find Keith.

Keith was sitting on the couch, Kosmo on one side, chewing on a toy while Keith leaned back and waited on Lance.

“Hey,” he said, eyes lingering on Lance’s face, probably studying his glasses and hair, if Lance had to guess, before looking him up and down a few times. Lance wondered if he liked how he looked in his clothes.

“Hey,” Lance responded. He dropped his bag onto the coffee table and sat down next to him before leaning in to kiss him.

Keith reached for him immediately, and Lance went easily, tossing one leg over Keith and climbing into his lap, Keith’s hands wrapped around the back of his thighs. Lance let his hands wander up Keith’s chest, then settle against his jaw.

After a long moment, Lance pulled back and settled against Keith’s thighs, Keith’s hands coming up to grip his hips.

“You look so good,” Keith murmured, eyes hooded as he watched him.

Lance grinned, “You have a thing for my glasses and curly hair?”

“Yeah,” he answered honestly, leaning in to press another kiss to Lance’s jaw.

He hummed, “Is that why you started flirting with me?”

“Kinda,” he breathed a laugh against Lance’s skin. “You knew my name that day too. I just—like you a lot.”

“Keith,” Lance murmured it right into his ear, delighted when he shuddered underneath him, hands gripping his hips that much tighter. “I like you a lot too.”

;;

The garage on 22nd street that Keith owned was easy enough to find, if not busier than he expected. There were several different employees working outside, a handful of cars parked in front of the garage doors and on the street too. One of the garage doors was open, and Lance walked in hesitantly, stopping at a desk just inside the door, where a bored looking woman was leaning back in a chair, blowing bubbles with her piece of gum.

“Um,” Lance started, a little nervous and intimidated, “I’m looking for Keith?”

“Is that a question?” the woman asked, turning her gaze to Lance, boredom more apparent than ever.

Before Lance had to answer, another woman stepped out from the front office, dressed in a pair of coveralls that had been rolled down to her hips and a black tank top, short hair chopped unevenly, but still clipped back.

“Ezor,” she snapped, “that’s probably Lance.”

“Oh shit, sorry, Acxa,” the woman at the desk, Ezor apparently, said. “You’re Lance?”

“Yeah,” he replied, smiling. Keith had told his employees enough about him that they could recognize him on sight. That was just—wow.

Ezor nodded, pointing him toward a car in the back of the shop, “He’s under the 2009 Camaro, just head on back and yell for him, he’ll hear you.”

Lance thanked them, turning to walk further into the garage. The other woman, Acxa, was still standing at the door, leaning against the frame while she watched him walk away.

The Camaro at the back of the shop was propped up on a jack, high enough for someone to crawl under it. When Lance got close enough and rounded the front of the car, he spotted Keith’s legs sticking out from underneath it, and he walked up, nudging one of Keith’s boots with his sneaker.

“Yeah?” Keith called, voice short.

“Hey.”

A pause, and then, “Lance?”

“Hi,” he said again with another nudge to Keith’s foot. “I brought you something.”

A second later, Keith rolled out from under the car, looking up at him in surprise, grinning a second later when he noticed Lance holding a cup of coffee for him.

“Hey,” he said, getting to his feet. He was wearing a pair of old jeans and a tank top, biceps flexing as he stood. His hair was pulled back, and his hands were stained with grease, which he wiped away with the rag in his back pocket. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to see my favorite mechanic in action,” Lance sang, wiggling his eyebrows.

“You found me, then,” Keith murmured, leaning in to press a gentle, quick kiss to Lance’s lips. He hummed against Keith’s mouth, free hand coming up to rest on his chest, right over his heart.

“They make the boss do all the work around here?” Lance teased when Keith pulled away.

Keith snorted, “Most of the time, yeah.”

God, Keith was so _cute_. Lance handed him the cup and said, “I brought you some coffee. You know, since the coffee here sucks so bad.”

“It’s not always about the coffee,” Keith finally admitted, glancing up at him from under his lashes as he accepted the cup. “Sometimes it’s about the company.”

Lance’s heart was beating too fast in his chest for this. Fuck, he’d told all of his friends that this wasn’t serious yet, but this felt like the most serious thing he’d ever been part of before. He and Keith had barely been going out for a week, and it felt like this was it.

God, Lance hoped it was. He was so, so into Keith.

“I figured,” Lance said, reaching down for Keith’s free hand and tangling their fingers together.

Keith looked down at his cup and grinned, cheeks flushing just a bit, obviously pleased. He squeezed Lance’s hand and said, “C’mon, let’s go to my office. I can take a break.”

Lance smiled, agreeing and watching Keith tip his coffee cup back, pale fingers carefully framing Lance’s loopy handwriting and the words he’d left there— _Lance’s Boyfriend_.

It might not have been a fake name this time, but it was the best yet.


End file.
